


Rose Tinted

by Stars



Category: Ensemble Stars! (Video Game)
Genre: M/M, Puppy Love, tori has a big crush
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-03-27
Updated: 2019-06-22
Packaged: 2019-12-18 14:18:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 8,274
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18251561
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Stars/pseuds/Stars
Summary: Tags are subject to change and a descritpion will be added when there's more chapters. Please leave comments and kudos if you liked it. or not.  (╯°□°）╯︵ ┻━┻





	1. The Gift

“No, no, this one is too lame…”

Another ball of paper thrown towards the trash bin, which was overflowing at this point. It bounced off and hit the ground, residing by the other scattered sheets of paper.

Tori had written one note after the other, making his message as sweet and concise as possible, but there was always a problem with each and every one. Too cutesy! Too childish! Too informal! Too brief! Too long! Tori just didn’t know how to write the perfect letter. He dropped his pen and sulked, resting his head on his hands. He even took his headphones off, turning off the upbeat music that had just been blasting into his ears. This was hopeless. 

It was a Friday night. Typically Tori would be watching TV with King curled up on his lap, and Yuzuru reading in the room nearby, but after today’s studies he immediately locked himself up in his room, much to his butler’s confusion. Here he’d made several futile attempts at writing a letter, on the verge of tears with frustration. Because it wasn’t just any letter, it was a love confession. And a love confession to his senior, Eichi Tenshouin, at that. The student who made his heart throb with a smile, who made his face grow red when he laughed, and who made his hands shake upon simple touch.

“Yet…what if he doesn’t like it?” muttered Tori. He spun round in his swivel chair, getting up only to flop onto his bed. He grabbed the nearest plushie to him, a tattered childhood toy, and held it close to his chest. 

Tori couldn’t handle rejection. Last time his feelings were hurt – ironically, by Eichi himself – he broke into tears and ended up running off, much to everyone’s concern. He couldn’t bear to get hurt again.

His face went warm and he sniffled. _Not again_ , he thought, releasing his teddy bear to wipe away his tears. 

Tori felt what could only make out to be a hollow, unpleasant feeling – as a person born with a silver spoon in his mouth, he was used to getting everything. But with people, it was vastly different. You could not buy their love. And sometimes there were people out there who don’t like you, no matter what. And Tori couldn’t handle that. He was scared of getting shut down by the one he admired the most. Deep down he knew it was childish, but the way his heart fluttered when he was around such a special person…he just wanted him to feel the same way. 

He grabbed his plushie again, letting out a muffled yell as he pressed it against his face. He was thinking stupid sappy things again. Things that would never happen. But at least he’d stopped crying.

_Knock knock._

Tori sat up, 

“Young master, may I come in?”

He really wanted to say no, but upon glancing at the clock he realized it was late - Yuzuru probably just wanted to wish him good night.

“Yes, yes - enter!”

In came a tired Yuzuru, holding a book in one hand. It looked old, dusty and boring.

“Evening, Tori,” much to Tori’s displeasure, Yuzuru sat himself on the end of the bed, “Are you going to sleep soon? We have shopping to do in the morning.”

“I was planning on sleeping, y-”

“Young master,” Yuzuru sounded alarmed, “What is this mess in your room?” His gaze was directed towards the trash bin, which was surrounded by bits of crumpled paper. 

Yuzuru got to his feet, but before he could take any steps towards it, Tori leant over and grabbed his wrist. 

“W-w-wait!” he yelped, “I’ll clean it, leave it to me!”

Yuzuru looked down at Tori in surprise, immediately putting a hand to the young master’s forehead despite his squawks of protest.

“Young master, wanting to clean up yourself? Have you gotten sick? Now that I say it, your face is looking quite red-”

“I’m fine!” Tori huffed, having to use both of his hands to pull Yuzuru off. He looked away, feeling his face heat up. The thought of Yuzuru reading the discarded letters sent his mind into a frenzy. The boy curled up on his bed, into a ball of shame. If his slave found out about his crush, he’d go on a witch-hunt around the school, or hell, the entire country. He could envision Yuzuru now, breathing fire as he stomped around the campus.

The daydream was shattered as Yuzuru sat beside Tori’s curled figure, putting a hand on his shoulder. The touch was feather-light. Yuzuru was always delicate with him, always scared that he’d get hurt. Annoying.

“If you’re ill, young master, you’ll be needing plenty of rest. Would you like me to heat up some soup?” 

Tori grumbled, still for a moment, before unfurling himself and sitting up beside his butler.

“And what about you?” said Tori, raising a brow. His inquisitive look was so cute, it made Yuzuru’s heart flutter with joy, a feeling that he showed by giving a simple smile.

“What about me?”

“You’re looking a bit out of touch yourself. I can’t have my butler groggy in the morning. Honestly, you’re always reading your books without much light - mama tells me that it damages your eyes y’know?”

Yuzuru was taken aback. Normally, Tori didn’t think much of what he was feeling. He opened his mouth, but he couldn’t form any words.

“Hey, gross!” Tori piqued, hitting Yuzuru’s side, “Are you crying?”

“Young master, I’m just touched by your words.” He wiped away a tear with the napkin he kept tucked in his pocket.

“Well now I regret them!” Tori huffed, standing up, “You know what? I think we’ve had enough chit-chat, leave my room at once!”

“Alright, alright, young master,” on his way out, he turned around, “Say though, what are those scraps of paper?”

 _Why can't you just leave?_ cried Tori’s inner voice.

“It’s just, ahem…I’m stuck on assignment for my literature class,” he bluffed, “But I’m struggling with the confession scene, is all. I don’t really know what the protagonist can do to get his er…feelings across.”

Despite lying, his voice was cracking in embarrassment. That tended to happen when he thought of Eichi.

“Well, why doesn’t the protagonist give the person a present?” 

“A present?”

“Yes, young master.”

Tori shuffled awkwardly, acutely aware he was blushing, “What do…what do people give as a present? Toys? Cars? Limited edition items?”

Yuzuru shook his head. He seemed to show no judgement or suspicion, donning his usual soft smile.

“It has to be something that gets the point across. Like flowers, or chocolates. Romantic things.”

“Ah…” 

Tori had just the idea.

-

“Well aren’t you here early, princess!” 

Like a cat, Tori instinctively hid behind something, not expecting another person around at this hour.

“Damn you, Long-Hair! I-I’m only here early to do some extra studies!”

“Extra studies? Is that what the little gift you were holding behind your back was for?”

“What, when –”

The magician reached into his own sleeve, pulling out a small glittery box with a blue bow on it.

“Hey!” Tori yelped, “Give that back!” 

Early Monday morning. Tori had left the house before Yuzuru, leaving a note on his bed. He’d spent Sunday night preparing and wrapping up his gift for Eichi, an assortment of rich chocolates at the store. In the end, the note he’d written was pitifully short, but he was proud of it. And he wasn’t going to let Wataru ruin the moment. If the anonymity of the gift was ruined, Tori would be humiliated.

The first-year sprung forward, but to his dismay, Wataru held it high in the air.

“Why are you so embarrassed, princess? There’s no shame in giving gifts!”

“It’s not – it’s not a gift! Give it back, Long-Hair!” he got on his tip toes, grabbing at Wataru’s blazer and trying with all his might to pull down the taller student. When that failed, he made a grab for his hair. Wataru saw his life flashing before his eyes before Tori gave the braid a strong _yank_ , making him drop the box in surprise. 

A clatter. The two looked down simultaneously. The giftbox had opened to show a container of fancy chocolates and an envelope. Tori wished he’d never put all those heart stickers on the envelope. Or written Eichi’s full name in the most fancy writing he could manage.

He dared to breathe, taking a glance at Wataru. He was gaping at the fallen gift, more puzzled than he was surprised. Tori did not then hesitate to get down on his knees and snatch up the items. He bundled it into his arms clumsily, feeling tears prick his eyes. He feared that Wataru would humiliate him on the spot; that he would tell everyone, and that Eichi would be embarrassed to see him ever again. Oh God, what if he’d be kicked out of Fine?

A pat on the head. A playful tousle of his hair. Tori looked up, his face automatically crinkled in disgust. 

“It’s okay,” Wataru’s expression was more serene than Tori had ever seen before, and as he held a finger over his lips he bent over, speaking in a hushed tone, “I won’t say anything. You can still give him the gift.”

Tori pushed away Wataru’s hand before wiping his nose. He shakily put the gifts back into the box, keeping his head bowed.

“Thanks.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tags are subject to change and a descritpion will be added when there's more chapters. Please leave comments and kudos if you liked it. or not. (╯°□°）╯︵ ┻━┻


	2. The Gift II

It was time for Tori to get up for classes. Yuzuru, expectant to shake his young master awake, had found himself towering over an empty bed. Pink blankets were scattered about, a note placed on top of the scrunched sheets. He was careful not to rouse King as he moved to pick it up.

In his head, he could hear Tori’s honeyed voice as he read over the note

_Good moorning slave, I’m going to school early to do some studying! Don’t come after me! I mean it! (small drawing of an angry dog)_

He let the paper drop to the floor, stone-faced. 

Young master couldn’t even do the bus fare right before, so what if he made some other mistake, or got himself into trouble? 

What if he bumped into the wrong people? If he came across some thugs they could push him around or hurt him and make him cry! Or he could get lost somewhere and get kidnapped!

Feeling faint, Yuzuru raced out the room before any other thoughts could befall him. Backpack slung over his shoulder, hair tousled, he left the house. He hadn’t even made his young master the lunch he had so despised.

-

Tori, giddy as ever, had his headphones on as he studied, humming along to the upbeat music. Wataru had slunk out a good while ago after his words to the first-year, probably off to his beloved theater room. Tori, who’d still been embarrassed by their interaction, had trouble deliberating where to put the gift. Fortunately for him, Eichi had left his knitted sweater in the room the day before. So Tori had decidedly tucked the box away into one of its sunken pockets, and decided with the rest of time he had, to work on his assignments. 

If by working on his assignments he means scrawling hearts and doodles on his notebook pages. He was just too head-over-heels to focus on the drawling bore that was algorithms and statistics. 

Tori turned to look out the window as the morning sun grew higher, watching the students making their way in. Unless he was on sick leave, Eichi was always one of the first students in school. 

Kagehira senpai. Isara-senpai. Hidaka-senpai. Where was Eichi? He scanned the new-coming students for the third year he’d so admired. At the sight of blonde hair his heart skipped, before it dawned on him it was another student. This wasn’t fair.

In the midst of his watching, the door clicked open – not that Tori could hear. He was roused with a firm shake of his shoulder, sliding down his headphones and about to snap at the cause of the disturbance as he turned around, only to abruptly freeze.

It felt like time slowed down when he saw that face. 

Eichi Tenshouin was gazing down at him, his eyes crinkled as he smiled.

Tori couldn’t quite describe it that well, but Eichi was so _pretty_. Long-lashed, soft-skinned, his eyes a blue haze that held a world of kindness, his mouth parted in a small and gentle smile. It took Tori every ounce of his willpower to not reach out and hug him, but before he could comprehend the situation, Eichi himself was moving forward, ruffling Tori’s hair through his fingers.

“My my, you look lost in your own world,” said the angel. He chuckled as Tori yelped and swatted away his hand. 

“E-Eichi-sama, I was just focused on stuff for class. I work hard, ya know?” said Tori, trying to look all praiseworthy and proud despite being red in the face.

“Hmm, yes, you’re working very diligently.” Eichi pointed at the drawings in Tori’s notebook, “Tell me, what subject requires doodles of little hearts and dogs?”

“H- you’re so mean!” Tori rebutted, “You’re starting to sound like Yuzuru!”

He puffed out his cheeks and clenched his fists, which seemed to further amuse Eichi as he poked Tori’s face quickly, deflating his puffed cheek. Tori, as per usual, let out a noise of displeasure.

Another laugh passed Eichi’s lips before he simmered down, donning one of his delicate smiles, “Beloved Tori, keep being you. Life is short, so you should enjoy it to its fullest.” 

He pointed at a doodle of a Yuzuru breathing fire.

“I like this one best. Really brings the color out of Yuzuru.”

With a quick pat on Tori’s head (much to the first year’s embarrassment), Eichi made his way to the coat-hangers, taking his sweater from the rack. Tori found himself reminiscing as he looked at him longingly, feeling his heart melt at the sight of the third year.

Eichi-sama…He looked so delicate, given the fragility of his physical state, yet he held himself so high. Tori knew how ruthless he could be - he’d seen glimpses of his scary façade, but it didn’t matter to him. It didn’t matter at all. To him, Eichi was a shining beacon of light; an angel without wings. He admired every ounce of him. He wanted to be just like him.

He just wanted him all to himself.

“Thought I’d lost this…” murmured Eichi, grabbing the sweater where Tori had lay his gift. 

He dressed into it as the first-year gazed a little too intently. He even slipped on his headphones, not wanting to fully take in Eichi’s reaction; not wanting to get caught.

Yet instead of a reaction, Eichi just waved in Tori’s general direction, with Tori making out the words _Well, I’ll be off now!_

But…there was quite obviously a noticeable bulge in the sweater pocket! Tori couldn’t take his eyes off of it, screaming on the inside.

_How can he not see it?_

He watched every step Eichi took as he left, hoping he’d notice, yet nothing. He left without a trace, moving as gracefully as ever into the light of the school halls.  


Tori slouched in his chair. He didn’t have any activities today with Fine or the school council. That meant he wouldn’t see Eichi for the rest of the day. 

Ironically, his music switched to a melancholy song.

The door had opened once again, yet Tori still could not hear it, nor could he detect the footsteps racing towards him.

Yuzuru, who’d _ran_ from the bus stop, shook Tori’s shoulders vehemently, trying to get any sign of life out of him.

“Did something happen, young master? I came all the way here for you because of that note. Why won’t you speak to me, did I do something that displeased you? Why did you leave the house, was it really because of studies? Are you alright, young master? You’re looking quite pale-”

Tori felt his soul leaving his body, not even registering Yuzuru’s presence.

_He didn’t notice the gift at all…_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry about the chapter’s length – I’m just more motivated to lay the story out in snippets!  
> Any problems with the pacing or characterization? Or maybe something else? I’m open to criticism!  
> Liked it? Leave a comment if you wanna, it can be short and sweet! It keeps me going!


	3. The Gift III

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I read a fic recently that was present tense, and I think it made the story flow so much nicer, so I used present tense in this chapter. Tell me if you like it better or not, because I’m planning to change the tenses of the previous chapters if it works to the reader’s favor.

Tori's the type to sing obnoxiously loud in the bathroom, practically shouting the chorus for Rainbow Circus.

A pair of tiny fists bang at the bathroom door at such a ferocity that Tori stops midway through song, lowering the hairbrush he’d been using as a microphone. 

Unmistakably…

“Big brother, it’s my turn to bathe, hurry up!”

He yaps back, “We literally have three other bathrooms!” 

“I don’t care, this one has the biggest tub!” comes her squeaky rebuttal. 

Like brother, like sister.

Tori rolls his eyes, placing his hairbrush on the sink, and quickly gets dressed.

“Kaay, sis. You win.”

-

Tori whisks into the student council that late afternoon, a spring in his step. It’s a Saturday, but club activities on the weekend is a common occurrence.

Opening the door means regaining himself first, taking deep breaths and clearing his head, yet as he makes his way in, his heart drops at the sight of a certain familiar blonde. Eichi with his blue eyes, who smiles ever so sweetly his way. 

Keito however is seated beside the blonde. He gives a curt nod Tori’s way. 

The young boy suppresses a frown, wanting to be alone with Eichi for once. He’d only been alone with him once that week – on the Monday morning he’d slipped him the gift, and now he’d wished more than ever that he’d savored that moment. He should’ve kept Eichi in the room with him just so he had an excuse to listen to him speak, to just gaze at his beauty, to just lean in and kiss h-

“Tori,” Keito speaks, clearing his throat, “Sit.”

Red-faced, he takes a seat. 

Well, they may’ve not been alone, but Tori reassured himself that at least he could listen to him talk – to hear his soft and airy voice as he spoke about trivial things alone was music to his ears. It was like a magic spell how his voice seemed to lull his senses. 

The tables were pushed together, so at least Eichi was within reaching distance. Mao walks in soon after, holding his usual goofy grin.

“Heyy Tori, I saw you skipping in here,” he says as he draws out a chair, “You excited ‘bout something?”

“Shut up, monkey,” Tori grumbles. 

Mao laughs, thankfully not pressing further.

The group chatters about the usual ordeals, and Tori finds himself learning a lot from his older peers. He mostly snacks on the fruit platter they have in the middle of the table, finding himself idly staring at Eichi through hooded eyes while the senior was occupied in conversation. At one point, while Keito and Mao had taken control of a conversation, Eichi turned his head to glance Tori’s way, to which Tori had already made a move for another strawberry, a tick away from being caught. 

Subaru waltzes in some time later, his orange hair highlighted by the evening sunlight’s glow. 

“Hey Mao! Ah, are you guys done? I was gonna come in to discuss the trip after some baseball with Hokuto, so I hope you don’t mind me dropping in.”

“Not at all, we can talk about it now,” says Eichi, tenting his hands as if prepped for business.

“What trip is this?” Keito looks between the two in puzzlement, “Why haven’t I heard about it?”

“Not to worry, Keito. Subaru-kun only mentioned it to me briefly in the hall the other day. Come, why don’t you take a seat, you must be tired from that baseball practice. Tori, come sit on my lap so he has somewhere to sit.” 

“Yeah, Himemiya, go listen to your club president,” Mao teases, peeling an orange.

Tori sticks out his tongue at the redhead with an accentuated _blehh_ , and moves towards Eichi while Subaru takes his chair. He sits on his senior’s lap with a satisfied smile that says _look at me, he favors me above all of you!_ Meanwhile, his inner emotions were on full alert; he wanted to be alone with Eichi, wanted to turn around and bury his face in his neck and hug and kiss him. He shuts the desires up as quickly as they come, reaching out to grab a peach. 

“So, as you know,” began Subaru, “with a school-break coming up after our exams, I was wondering if we could take a trip to Shirahama for, hmm, how long could the school budget cover it? Three days? They have a beaches, hot springs, a zoo…”

“Oh c’mon, I think we’ve all been to Shirahama,” Tori butts in.

“Now now, Tori,” Eichi warns, “I may have been there myself, but that doesn’t mean everyone else has.” _Because they can’t afford it_ , Tori thought arrogantly.

“My point is, it should give students the motivation to achieve better grades! And the higher the grade, the better room they get!”

Keito chimes in, pushing his glasses up, “While that sounds like a nice idea for a reward, we’re not getting our grades back until much farther into the holidays, where ticket prices shoot up, so I don’t think that last part checks out.”

“At the same time, should people who did badly at their tests be allowed to even go?” Mao says.

“This academy doesn’t have any failing students. If they fail, they’re out. Unless they’re Ritsu. Not sure how that kid’s still in here.” Keito says.

“Right, right,” Subaru continues, “I’ve already looked at lodge prices, and they’re super decent, plus there’s a lot of things to see there, so I doubt anybody would get bored!”

A holiday with Eichi there? Tori glances up towards his senior, who looks thoughtful for a moment before responding, “It sounds like a good idea. I’ll have to ask the teachers about it, but I think it seems fine in theory.”

“Eyy,” Subaru and Mao grin at each other. Seems like they’d been wanting this for a while, Tori thought.

“I’ll do what I can in my power, after all, I think the students here deserve it,” Eichi says, warding off a coughing spell with a few gulps of water. “I, however, won’t be going.”

Tori squawks loudly before anyone can speak, “Wait, hold on, why not?” 

He’d already gone into a fantasy of Eichi in a bathing suit. _Oh God I have to stop._

He looks up at the blonde in an accusatory manner - though, like always, he simply appeared cute and grumpy in the eyes of his senior - and Eichi beams down at him with a tired smile, carding his fingers through the boy’s pink hair.

“Not to make it about me, I apologize if it seems so, but I just don’t want to burden anyone during leisure-time with another bout of illness. Especially you, my dear Tori. I’m sorry if it comes as an inconvenience to you all.”

“I…I don’t want to go either then! Eichi-sama matters more to me than some dumb holiday,” Tori argues, his gaze snapping towards Subaru as if he was to blame.

Subaru seems to break a sweat, caught off balance by Tori’s defensiveness, before he chuckles quietly, “I’m sorry, Eichi. Your little pet makes me laugh sometimes-”

“Am _not_ a pet-”

“I do understand, though.” He smiles contently, politely. “If you change your mind on coming, that’s also okay. Let me know what the turnout is as soon as you can.” A quick glance at his watch. “-Ah, anyway, I need to catch a bus, like, now. Bye bye~”

“I’ll come with,” Mao says, already rising, “The meeting is drawing to an end, anyway,”

Tori watches the two leave with a keen eye and wonders, did Subaru and Eichi ever have problems with one another? Eichi seemed to stir hate within everyone; had a tendency to push all the wrong buttons to get to the position he was in today, and Tori had found he’d lost track of all his opponents. He didn’t understand it, anyway, how people could hate someone so ethereal and soft-spoken. 

Tori hears Keito shuffling to his right, and looks over to see him stuffing his backpack with paperwork before slinging it back on.

“I’ll be off, I’m supposed to be cooking dinner for the family tonight, and my brother gets pissy when I’m home late.”

“Keito, language!” reprimands Eichi, covering Tori’s ears.

The green-haired boy rolls his eyes and raises his hand in farewell, about to leave the two behind before Eichi interrupts him.

“Ah Keito, before you go, do you happen to recognize this box?” 

Tori’s heart flutters – he doesn’t see what Eichi is holding up, but he can take a _good_ guess.

An unfaltering tone. “No I haven’t, sorry. Give it to lost and found if you’re looking for the owner.”

With that, he leaves.

So he had noticed the gift within the week! But why would he assume Keito had anything to do with it?

“Tori,” Eichi interrupts his thoughts, and holds the box over Tori’s head so that he has to look up.

“Is this yours?”

He opens his mouth, but all that comes out is a breath. _Ah. He’s gauging people’s expressions. Great._

“No, but with the blue bow and all…” he says, “Maybe it’s from Yuzuru. He l-likes that colour. Or uh, Wataru.”

“Really?” Eichi says, and as Tori sits on his senior’s lap, Eichi opens the box right before his eyes, unfolding the contents of the letter. 

_I hear that dark chocolate tastes good with tea. Please help yourself to these treats.  
From, your secret admirer_

“They have v-very neat handwriting,” Tori comments innocuously. _Shit, shit, shit_

“Uh-huh,” Eichi says, and reveals a crumpled piece of paper from his pocket. It’s some notes Tori had written down for himself earlier during the meeting. Eichi very confidently places the pieces of paper down on the table, side by side, and peers at them from over Tori’s shoulder. Tori nervously chews on his finger, shoulders tense.

“And so, why is the handwriting identical?”

“Uhm…” Tori turns his face towards Eichi, his face feeling dangerously hot at this point as Eichi watches with crinkled eyes. 

“Coincidence?” says Tori.

Eichi sighs, though his lips are upturned in amusement. “Never would I have thought you to grow such a soft spot for _me_ , sweet Tori.”

“Eichi-sama y-you...”

“The chocolates were very delicious, by the way,” he says, whispering dangerously close to Tori’s ear.

Tori almost leaps up before but Eichi grasps him, wrapping an arm around his chest, and places the box down to wrap another arm round him.

Tori feels his heart sink at the thought that he wasn’t being taken seriously. He balances himself, trying to breathe calmly. 

“No, no, it’s okay. I’m sorry.” Eichi says, seemingly recovered from his little frenzy.

Tori considers wriggling away, but a small part of him wants to hear what Eichi has to say for himself. Still, his face just doesn’t cool down, and a warm tear slides down his cheek before he can stop it.

“Has anyone told you that you’re a sadist, Eichi-sama?” his voice wavers.

Eichi chuckles gleefully, devilishly, without response. He pushes his into face into the boy’s back, tufts of hair spilling over Tori’s shoulder.

Tori was confused. _Is this a hug? Are we hugging right now? Why exactly are we hugging?_

Now he starts to squirm, wanting nothing more than to just run outside, fall to the ground, and let the earth swallow him whole.

“I have my reasons for all that I do, that’s all,” Eichi says, muffled.

“Then why are you putting me on t-the spot like this?”

Eichi moves from Tori’s shoulder, gently clasping the boy’s jaw in his hands and moving his face so he was looking back at him.

The senior notices the teardrop with a small gasp, wiping it away with his thumb. Now Tori’s feelings really were in a whirlpool of confusion, even more so when Eichi wrapped his arms around him once again, pressing the boy to his chest gently. His touch was soft, faintly reminding him of Yuzuru’s, though in this scenario he felt Eichi was more so supposed to be the delicate one. 

Yet even if Eichi was supposedly delicate, he held Tori captive in a manner that seemed forceful, that made it seemed like he was prey the senior couldn't let go of. It seems that Eichi's balance between being a leader others could look up to and a power-hungry idol was an unstable one. 

“I’m...sorry. I didn’t mean to make you cry. I just saw a chance to do some detective work and I took it, my dear Tori. Not much has been happening lately, with the exams coming up and all. Nobody wants to compete against me, and so I have to find a little bit of excitement for myself.”

“Mmm, I…you mean it? I guess if it’s you, Eichi-sama, I can forgive you…” he sniffles, letting himself be enveloped in Eichi’s warmth, “Everyone gets a little bored sometimes, I guess.”

Eichi brushes his hand against Tori’s hair. The boy looks at him, notices him look right back, seemingly playful and tender as usual. Then he quickly covers his hand with his mouth as he starts to cough. Tori registers it another bout until he starts coughing to the point it sounds painful, like he’s trying to heave something malignant out of his body. Tori gets to his feet in panic, reaching inside his bag to grab his inhaler and shoving it into Eichi’s hands. Time passes as Eichi takes one puff after the other in increments, Tori watching him worriedly all the while. When he had the energy, Eichi waves his hand dismissively.

“I’m alright, I’m alright. Just need to take some medicine and lie down. Tori, would you care to help me reach the infirmary?”

Without hesitation Tori gave his body as support as best he could despite his small stature, dragging Eichi and his bag along with him to the room that his senior was ever so familiar with. 

“Of course, Eichi-sama. Don’t worry, I’ll look after you.”

\- 

“Are you comfortable enough?”

Drugged up on several pills, Eichi’s smile still holds palpable amusement.

“Yes, you fluffed up those pillows very well - and the dog plush, I must say, is a nice touch, dear Tori. It’s so very cute.” He looks towards the dog plush, an old thing that Tori still cherishes from his babyhood, of which he carries around for good luck sometimes. Tori kneels down beside the bed, and slowly reaches forward to brush back Eichi’s fringe, catching his senior off-guard for a second before he realizes Tori was just feeling his forehead.

“Hmm. You’re still kinda hot, but I think it’s getting better.”

“Well, at least I didn’t vomit this time,” Eichi says with a wry tone, keeping his gaze curiously fixed on Tori’s big green eyes, “I’m glad I didn’t. I wouldn’t have wanted you to see that.” 

Tori rose up, smiling in his playfully charming way, “Well, let’s hope this bad bout goes away today so the rest of your weekend is nicer, okay?”

It seems that Eichi’s smile falters ever so slightly, but Tori doesn’t think anything of it. That is, until Eichi outstretches a hand to hold onto Tori’s, which Tori feels is smaller and pudgier in comparison to Eichi's soft hands. 

“You’re nice and cold.” Eichi says.

“Mm? Er, Eichi-sama, are you okay?”

Eichi tugs the hand towards him with what faint strength he has, enough to make Tori awkwardly stumble against the bed.

“You’ll stay with me a little while, won’t you?”

Tori raises a brow. He wonders if that’s a good idea, considering that certain bugs were contagious. 

However, he was never one to let his Eichi down. How could he decline such a request? Alone time, just like he’d dreamed, and to be so close to the one he so admired…Even if it may’ve just been Eichi’s sleepy pills talking, Tori’s heart flutters in delight at such a personal request and he nods, peeling off his shoes and sweater before crawling to Eichi’s side.

He’s not sure what to do at first, making himself as small as possible, but it’s not close enough for Eichi’s liking as he pulls Tori in despite the silly flustered noises he was making.

Eichi grumbles and nestles his head against Tori’s chest, his forehead touching the cold crook of his neck, and the boy feels his mind swirling, wondering if he’d ended up in some crazy good dream. He’d pinch himself, but instead he found himself slowly wrapping an arm around Eichi’s side, earning a content sigh.

 _He’s really touch-starved, isn’t he?_ wonders Tori off-handily, _Then again, so am I, really. Guess our parents never gave us much love, huh, Eichi-sama? We have all these riches, and so it seems like we have everything, yet we struggle to connect with others on an emotional level, unable to relate to their struggles when we’ve been fed with a silver-spoon since we were babies. We’re looked down upon and labelled superficial, yet deep down we’re just lonely, aren’t we?_

As if having read his thoughts, Eichi grazes his fingers along Tori’s back in a sort of comforting manner, drawing loops and circles. Tori turns his attention to the window, trying to find some sort of distraction from this situation as his heart drums in his ears, and finds himself reflecting instead.

Shards of light are flickering under the billowing curtains, shades of wheat yellow and soft pinks and subdued reds. Eichi is curled against Tori’s figure, his hair lightly tickling his neck now. Tori's somehow reminded of a cradled child, albeit a very big child. Eichi is more so like a wisp of a human, so thin and lithe and barely tangible, tucked away under Tori’s arms as he breathes in a slow and steady rhythm. He must of been drifting off already.

Tori knows he shouldn’t be feeling this way, but when Eichi breathes against his neck he gets incredibly flustered, goosebumps rising on his skin. Then Eichi shifts, getting slightly more comfortable as he dozes off, he face pulled away from Tori’s chest so he could circulate some fresh air. 

And as he snoozes, Tori thinks to himself how he’s never seen Eichi this close up before – he was so tall, well, as was every student in Yumenosaki – but to call him beautiful this close up was an understatement, with his slight frown and reddened cheeks. 

_Eichi-sama is asleep so he won’t notice right? I’ve always wanted to try…_

Tori cranes his neck forward just slightly and kisses his forehead. _A little magic spell for you to get better_.

Is this…is this how someone feels when they’re in love? A strong sense to protect the person of their desire, at all costs?

_Yuzuru’s right. I’ve been reading too much manga._

Tori rests his face by Eichi’s, closing his eyes after watching him for a few minutes, no particular thoughts in his mind. Just a sense of bliss.


	4. A Butler's Kindness

Tori doesn’t get home on that day until the sun had dipped below the horizon, the sky hanging above him like a curtain of ink. As Tori walks towards the taxi he’s ordered, he marvels at the sky, as if it was the first time he’d ever seen the stars. They glistened magnificently, like a string of pearls.

Kissing Eichi had made Tori feel all bubbly inside, and he knew at that moment that he was deeply infatuated with his senior, but on such a beautiful night, he couldn’t care in the slightest.

There were repercussions, of course. He came home to a solemn Yuzuru, who didn’t even look up from the book in his hands, though Tori could see his grip on the paper being quite tight. 

And before Tori can even slip off his blazer, Yuzuru caves in. He was just unable to keep himself quiet when he was worried, closing his novel without leaving a bookmark inside, and looking up at Tori with a tired sadness in his eyes. 

“Tori…Master Himemiya, you did not answer any of my calls,” he says, “You need to at least leave a message. I have been entrusted with your safety by your family. I cannot stand having anything happen to you.”

Of course, Tori makes the scenario more difficult than it has to be. He shrugs off his blazer and sloppily hangs it, before giving Yuzuru a look of indifference. Already, he starts feeling sour.

“Yeah, well, you don’t need to babysit me,” Tori responds, “I’m a growing teen, you know. If I need your help, I will ask. A boy can’t grow properly if he feels like he’s being smothered all the time!”

Yuzuru hesitates. There are a dozen things he could say to reprimand Tori. Instead, he bows his head slightly. He knew it was irresponsible of him, but to him there was nothing worse than being the source of Tori’s bad mood.

“Anyway,” Tori says, flopping onto the living room sofa, “Reheat last night’s dinner for me. There’s something I want to tell you about.”

Yuzuru trails off to the kitchens in a mopey fashion. 

_Of course, Tori has his reasons_ , Yuzuru muses, _and he makes a valid point about wanting space…but just how do I tell him that I was deathly worried of him?_

-

Tori eats a lot faster than he usually does with Yuzuru’s meals – partly because he hadn’t eaten since early that afternoon, and partly because he wanted to earn Yuzuru’s good mood back, for the sake of ridding tension. It seems to work, with Yuzuru no longer having any worried creases on his face.

“So,” Tori starts, “At the student council today, while you weren’t there, we discussed how we can reward the students after all the exams are over – ” he spots King strolling into the room, and makes kissy noises until the dog jumps to his side, “ – and we may very well be getting a holiday. To Shirahama!”

“A holiday,” Yuzuru muses, seemingly unfazed, “Well, that’s only if you achieve good grades, of course.”

Tori pouts, momentarily stopping from stroking King’s fur. “What do you mean? You should know your place, slave. It’s not like you can dictate my choices-”

“Young master, that is _exactly_ what I am here for.” Yuzuru interjects.

“…Alright. Well, it’s not like I’ll get bad grades anyway. I work hard, I do! In fact, because of how great I am, I deserve a sweet snack…” Tori gets up from the couch and walks over to the kitchen. He’d started humming a little tune, his hands swaying in that kind of exaggerated manner when he was happy, and Yuzuru bit his lip – he _knew_ what was about to unfold.

Immediately in the kitchen, Tori lets out a loud, annoyed groan, which Yuzuru could hear quite clearly from where he was sitting, yet the student flipped through the pages of book without any worry. 

“Yuzuru, _damn_ you! Where did you hide the cookie jar!?”

He doesn’t have the strength to respond. Nor chastise Tori’s language. Tori was bound to come up to him, anywa- ah, yep, he stormed right up to Yuzuru and swiped the book from his hands with ease. 

Yuzuru smiles serenely despite the fact Tori is all up in his face, tight-lipped and fuming. His cheeks are rosy red and his eyes shine with a childish determination to get his way – truly, this was Tori’s way of trying to get what he wanted. It’s almost too adorable. But if Tori didn’t get what he wanted, he was sure to grow a tantrum…well, Yuzuru knew more than anyone that he had the fighting relentlessness of a hurricane. So he approached the matter calmly. 

“If you’re hungry, you can eat more leftovers,” Yuzuru counters cautiously, reaching for his book. Predictably, Tori raises as high as he could. Which was, of course, a laughable distance.

“No,” Tori says, “I need my daily dose of sugar, Yuzuru. I’m a growing boy, I need sweets for energy!”

“You had chocolate cupcakes for breakfast this morning, Tori.” 

“Still not enough!” he yelps back. As he talks, he gestures with his hands wildly, swinging them around in the air. Yuzuru moves to grab the book – his movement so fast that Tori yelps as he grabs it. Tori moves down with it, his grip on it being iron-strong. 

Down, he falls…onto Yuzuru.

“Young master, let go of the book.” Yuzuru says. Tori’s burrowed into his chest.

“No,” he says, muffled. He lifts his head up. 

“ _Tori_ ,”

“Don’t use my name, slave!” Tori yelps. He now tries pulling on the book, At this rate, he was bound to either damage the book, or his grasp would slip and he’d fall back, as Yuzuru was physically a lot stronger.

“You’re going to hurt yourself,” Yuzuru says, “You can have snacks tomorrow!”

“No, no, I want them now!” Tori cries out, “I want my cookies!”

Yuzuru prayed that his young master's yelling didn't wake up his sister, who slept upstairs. Tori’s yelling even startled King from across the room, who whined and tilted his head.

Yet Tori was still grasping the book and pulling at it with all his strength. It was like witnessing a person trying to free Excalibur from its stone pillar: strenuously, and without any results. It was worrisome to witness that his grip was also slipping as he pulled at it, and Yuzuru quickly grabbed Tori's arm with his free hand.

“Okay, okay. Please, Young master. I’ll give you three of your favourite if you just change into your pajamas.”

Tori gasps, up like a bolt. 

Yuzuru sighs in relief as he leaves – having Tori so close to his face like that made him feel…strange.

-

Yuzuru can’t help but give him an extra cookie, before Tori went to brush his teeth. Though he was a tumultuous soul, he really was easy to please so long as you knew which buttons to press. Truly a simple boy at heart – a factor which made Yuzuru smile to himself.

Yuzuru was sitting by Tori's bedside when he comes back, the purple-eyed boy still intently reading his book. Tori takes no time to crawl under his sheets. They were soft and inviting, and…ah, freshly-washed, too, he noticed. Yuzuru must’ve done the laundry while he was away.

“…Thanks… for cleaning the sheets…” Tori mutters.

Yuzuru puts the book down on his lap. “What was that?” he asks.

“I said, thank you.”

“For what, young master?”

“The bedsheets…you know. Thank you for washing them. While I wasn’t here.”

Yuzuru gives him a warm, contented smile, like a well-fed cat. “I know. I heard you the first time, master Himemiya.”

_Bastard!_

“Why you - I ought to send you away and find myself another butler that doesn’t tease me and gives me back-talk!” Tori says. 

Yuzuru sighs, bookmarking his novel. “Honestly, with all the liberties I’ve been giving you…I feel I have been failing the Himemiya household,” he pauses, looking grim, “I wonder if I should just tell your parents that I’m not doing well at managing you. It would save them the grief of seeing their son turn into a disobedient rebel.”

Disobedient rebel! Well…Tori let it slide for now, thinking about it for a moment.

Yuzuru had, after all, seemed really worried when Tori got home late, which Tori _did_ find annoying at first but…if Yuzuru had disappeared without a trace, and Tori couldn’t reach him, he too would be worried sick. Just thinking about it made him upset!

He really was so reliant on Yuzuru... And, truthfully, no matter how moody Tori had been today, Yuzuru still smiled at him so kindly, handling him with ease…like he knew Tori’s temper was just a passing storm.

Yuzuru honestly knew him more than anyone. Even Tori felt guilty over how...ungrateful he acted.

Tori tugs on Yuzuru’s sleeve. It’s a harsh tug – he’s not used to comforting others, after all. 

He was so used to being immersed in thoughts about himself and his newfound infatuation for Eichi, that he hadn’t considered Yuzuru’s insecurities. There was a feeling in his chest, even. A dull pang. Sadness? 

_There's no way Yuzuru is planning on going away, right? I can't...I can't imagine a stranger taking his place..._

Yuzuru looks up, seeing the boy coddled up with his favourite old teddy-bear. His expression, once so sleepy, was now slightly scrunched up as tears slid down his cheeks. 

“Young master… please don’t cry.” Yuzuru hushes, reaching forward to gently rub a tear away.

“You’re not being serious, right?” Tori manages to say, weepily, “You’re just joking, aren’t you?”

“I – no, I’m sorry, I don’t know what I was saying. Just a silly little insecurity. Please, don’t focus on that, you shouldn’t be upset,” he was cooing one phrase after the other, as if he was afraid a dam would break and Tori would either cry louder or get angry. Or both.

“Good,” Tori says, sniffling, “It was a stupid idea.”

“Ah, indeed, it _was_ a stupid idea,” Yuzuru replies, nodding his head. He could feel his heart ache at the sight of Tori’s sadness, wanting to just will it away. Gracefully, he moves to tuck the younger boy in, who sighs gratefully at the blanket’s warmth. Tori rubs away the trail of tears from his soft cheeks, calming down. 

Tori would never dare say it, but having Yuzuru around while his feelings were a mess made him feel… safe. But of course, he _had_ to keep feelings for Eichi a secret. It made his stomach twist in knots when he remembered that Wataru knew. He was no fool, after all. He’d seen the lovey-dovey envelope of Tori’s letter. 

Tori just hoped Wataru would stay true to his word. Ah…he especially hoped he didn’t say anything to Yuzuru. It made sense, since he was close to both Eichi and Tori too. But how would Yuzuru react? There was no way Yuzuru himself could possibly deny how beautiful Eichi was, being the shining star of Fine. But the thought of Yuzuru knowing didn't feel right, for some reason, even if Yuzuru knew practically everything else about him. Tori hoped his butler wouldn't somehow perceive his lovestruck feelings, if anything. 

Yuzuru rises from his chair, to which Tori thinks to himself upsetly, _Hey, where are you going? I didn't dismiss you - come back, I feel anxious!_

Needless to say, Yuzuru stops himself from moving to the door when Tori lets out a whine.

“What is it?” he asks, eyes crinkled in worry.

“Mmm, come here,” Tori says, gesturing him to come closer – to move down, lower.

Unquestioningly, Yuzuru leans down, shadowing over Tori.

“Goodnight kiss,” Tori says, stubbornly biting his lip, “I want a goodnight kiss.”

“Young master, please, you are much too grown for such a –”

Tori grabs Yuzuru’s shirt, feebly trying to tug him closer. “I’m sad! I need a kiss to heal me!”

 _If only you know how you sounded!_ Yuzuru thinks, embarrassed. 

It had certainly been a long time since Tori had said such a thing.

There was a story behind it, stemming from when they were younger. Tori was a child who often broke into tears over small inconveniences. A scraped knee, a stomach ache, or the ‘toys who stared sadly at him’ from store windows, that he wasn’t allowed to buy – and so forth. But Yuzuru had quickly developed a way to stop Tori’s sadness before he got out of hand. One time, when Tori had dropped his ice cream cone on the floor, and his young face contorted as he was about to bawl his eyes out, Yuzuru hurriedly came to the rescue. He’d developed a new-found trick, spurred on by his master’s childhood naivety: he told Tori he could cure his sadness, with a single, enchanted kiss. Tori was puzzled, for a start, interrupting his stream of tears. And when Yuzuru gave Tori’s forehead a kiss, Tori’s faced warmed, and he commented that he did, strangely enough, feel a little better. Of course, Yuzuru had to dish out the rest of his change for a new ice-cream, but keeping his master’s sadness at bay was all that mattered.

It became commonplace after that for young Tori to tug Yuzuru's sleeve and unabashedly demand ‘healing kisses’ but, for it to happen now…Yuzuru hadn’t heard the phrase for years!

Yuzuru looks torn, but Tori only looks up with him with his usual, stubborn frown. That is, to say…just adorable.

Yuzuru leans down, and gave Tori a kiss on the forehead, lingering just for a moment.

“Uwah, no cheek kiss?” Tori says as he withdraws.

“Young master, that’s quite enough,” Yuzuru counters, looking more awkward than he’d like to be. “I’m sure you’ll feel better after some rest. I’ll make you your favourite breakfast tomorrow, okay?”

Tori beams, and to Yuzuru, it means the world.

After he leaves Tori’s room, the younger boy flicks off the fairy light on his bedside. The room is enshrouded in darkness, much different from his mind, which was full of color, full of feelings, swirling, swirling…

A holiday coming up, and with Eichi! To see his senior, smiling in the sunlight, spoiling him with attention... Tori just had to study hard, and he was sure to spend as much time with his Eichi as possible! He kicks his legs in excitement, crumpling the sheets. He couldn’t wait!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m sorry it’s been over two months! *sweat drops* I definitely need to do more planning for this story – map it out a bit more, and then write up the next chapters. But I will finish it! So, until then--
> 
> Also, does anyone know which Enstars stories that show Yuzuru's shows 'darker' tendencies, because I kind of ..forgot. On that note, I honestly should re-read some of their stories, because I want to pin down their speech patterns as best I can so they don't turn out OOC. Here's to re-reading Enstars~ 
> 
> But hey, I'm super hyped on seeing the relationship of these two in the anime. :D


End file.
